You Mean the World to Me
by nightwing1296
Summary: Captain America's older sister disappeared when he was nine years old. Believing her to be dead he pushed his grief to the back of his mind and let her memory fade away. But after the Civil War, he and his team find a weapon Hydra had been hiding for years that shocks Steve Rogers to the core. His sister is alive. Why did Hydra take her? How will she fit in to this world?
1. Chapter 1

**Alright, just to set the stage a little bit: This takes place about four months after the events of _Civil War_ and before _Spider-man: Homecoming_. The Peter Parker in this is the MCU version from _Civil War_. I don't know what is going to happen in the new Spider-man movie yet but I will be utilizing the characters seen in the trailer. I am taking creative liberty with parts of some of the lives of some Avengers.**

 **I do not own any of the Avengers or their respective movies.**

Steve Rogers crouched at the top of a building in Queens, NY, while eyeing the alley below him. His eyes quickly scanned the other buildings to make sure the rest of his team was in place. He could barely see the outline of Clint on the roof of the building opposite him or Wanda crouching on a hidden fire escape at the back of the alley. Eyes flicking up for a brief second assured him that Sam was circling the area, going in and out of cloud cover so most New Yorkers who bothered to look up would think he was just a giant hawk.

"Black SUV coming in hot from the south. Lights off. Think this is our guy?" Scott Lang's voice sounded over the earpiece.

"Probably, it's about 5 minutes from the exchange time Nat found on the dark web," Steve responded. After he had broken the others out of Ross' underwater prison, the group had taken refuge in Wakanda, partially for Steve to observe the progress Wakandan scientists made on saving Bucky and partially to have an outpost for them to find the remaining branches of Hydra. Natasha had joined them not long after the break out and together with Clint they had located a few scattered throughout Europe. However a few nights ago Nat had come across an exchange between two branches discussing a "secret weapon" that take out any military weapon in the galaxy. No one was sure if that was an exaggeration or actual fact, but either way they had agreed they needed to check it out and confiscate this supposed weapon of mass destruction. That was what lead them to this situation: hiding out in the middle of the night in Queens, trying not to be discovered by the police, Tony, or his new pet spider.

"I wonder what this 'secret weapon' is they mentioned. From the messages they sent back and forth you would think they were transporting the Queen of England," Sam chimed in.

"Whatever it is I want us to confiscate it as quickly and safely as possible. 'Make sure it's down for at least a day with the special dosage' gave me a bad feeling about this weapon," Steve said just as he heard the drone of an engine from the alley entrance. Just as Scott said, a black SUV turned into the opening and slowly crawled about mid-way down. The driver left the engine on as three other men opened the various passenger doors. They walked out in front of the car and waited. A few minutes went by before dark figures emerged from the building Clint was hiding on top of. There were about four of them, clearly male based on their stature, who stopped a few feet away from the first group.

"Well? Do you have it?" One of the men from the car asked.

"Yes. But first we need to know you are who you say you are," someone from the second group responded. This one had a heavy New York accent.

The first one who spoke walked forward and handed the New Yorker a flash drive, which he took back to the building. After what felt like hours the man opened up the door, but rather than joining the group again he instead held the door wide open for another man. This one was carrying a big duffle bag with both of his arms.

"Here's the weapon. Handle it with care, it's been unstable recently."

"That's it. Go, go, go!" Steve said into the microphone. "Careful with the bag!"

Clint fired an arrow in between the two groups, cutting the man with duffle bag off before he could hand off the weapon. Wanda used her powers to lift the bag into the air as Sam swooped down to catch it. Steve jumped off the roof and landed between the men, throwing his shield at duffle bag man, who was looking into the air like a lost puppy.

"The Avengers! Clear out!" He heard someone yell. The men from the van ran back to the doors and jumped in. The others ran to the door the New Yorker was still holding open.

"Scott and I've got the van Steve, you and Wanda get the others," Clint yelled over the mic.

"Got it Barton, be careful." Steve ran at the door, throwing his shield to keep it from closing. He slipped inside with Wanda right behind him but stopped once he entered. There was no one to be found. "Dang it!"

"Language, Steve." Sam laughed.

"Not now Sam. This group got away, the room is empty. We'll search the rest of the building but I don't see where they could have gotten off to."

"I just blew out their tire. Wanda, wanna help us give Stark a present?" Clint asked.

"It would be my pleasure," Wanda glanced over to Steve who nodded his head signaling the go ahead. Once Wanda ran off, Steve wandered around the room. He knocked on the walls, opened all of the cabinets, and analyzed every piece of the room he got to until Sam's voice filled his ears.

"Steve, you need to get to the Quinjet ASAP."

"Hang on, Sam. I need to find where these guys escaped from."

"NOW." Steve sighed and ran out of the building. It took a few minutes to get to the warehouse they parked the jet at. Sprinting up the walkway he found Nat and Sam standing at the medical table.

"What is so important about this weapon?" he asked. Neither of teammates responded to his question. They just looked at him and moved to clear his line of sight. He was not expecting what he saw at all. Laying on the table, the bag spread out, was a girl. Despite being curled in fetal position, Steve could gather she was about five feet tall and unhealthily thin. Her skin was pale, so pale Steve pick out her veins individually. He was afraid to touch her for fear of breaking her, she seemed to almost be a porcelain doll someone hadn't cared for. It was clear that she hadn't seen a shower in a while; her hair was matted and dirt was on her face and under her nails. She wore a hospital gown which was open in the back, the bumps of her spine looking as though they would rip through the skin trying to cover them. He stepped closer to examine her face; there was something about it that Steve could not put a finger on. It didn't seem all that familiar but it gave him a warm, peaceful feeling. He was confused since he was sure he had never met her before. But then again, this poor girl looked like she had been through hell. Her cheeks were shallow and there were dark bruises under her eyes. There was dried blood on her lips and hand marks around her neck. Figuring out her age was difficult but Steve gathered she was around 16 or 17. He looked up at the other two in the room, who had moved to stand next to each other. "It…it's a girl. The weapon is a teenage girl?"

"What!?" Scott, Clint, and Wanda all yelled into their mics.

"The bag was holding a girl." Sam's eyes never left Steve's. They were both thinking the same thing. They could not take her back to Wakanda. Although it would be safe, their scientists were working night and day to help Bucky. T'Challa had been so accommodating to all of them; they could not ask him to store a potentially deadly enhanced, if that's what the girl was. There was only one other place that could take care of this situation and be a safe haven for all of them, if he was willing to speak to the team.

"When you guys drop off the present, stay there. We're coming to meet you," Steve said as he quickly ran to the controls. The engine whirred to life and the walkway closed. Sam strapped the girl onto the table before joining Nat on the passenger bench.

"Are you sure about this?" Nat asked.

"It's the only other place we'll be safe at."

"He could easily call Ross and have us stored in that underwater prison."

"I would like to give him the benefit of the doubt here."

"I don't."

"Let's just see what happens." The rest of the trip was silent. Only when the compound filled the glass did they interact. Sam picked up the girl and they all quickly exited the plane. The others joined them as they made their way to the front doors of the large building. Tony Stark opened one of them a few minutes later, a hard glare in eyes when he looked at Steve. But his eyes quickly flicked to Sam and the sickly girl in his arms. He looked to Steve and before he could get a word out Steve answered him, "Tony we need your help."


	2. Chapter 2

**So I realized I made a typo in the story description. The girl is Steve's** ** _older_** **sister, not younger. For those who read it before I changed it, I just wanted to let you know that. But anyway, here is the next chapter! I hope you guys enjoy!**

"You got anything yet, Tony?" Steve asked as he paced around the lab at the compound. Tony sat at a large computer running diagnostics on the girl they found after their Hydra bust. DNA scans, facial recognition scans, drug tests, all sorts of things ran across the various monitors scattered throughout the room. The girl in question was lying in a hospital bed in the room across the hall with Nat standing watch. Tony had put at least three IVs in her to give her different nutrients and some water; just from looking at her they could tell she was severely dehydrated and horribly underfed. They had been there for about four hours and had figured out nothing else about her.

"Sorry Steve. Whoever this girl is, no one seems to be looking for her," Tony answered as he ate blueberries from a plastic bag. Where had that come from? "Blueberry?"

"No."

"It'll calm your nerves."

"I said no."

"Suit yourself. Hehe, get it?" Tony looked at Steve with a smug smile. Steve just let out an exasperated sigh and shook his head, turning to glance over to the other room. There was still that odd feeling in his stomach that he somehow knew this girl. It was bugging him. He was kicking himself because he knew the answer was obvious but his mind just couldn't place it. Maybe if she just opened her eyes…

"Hey, Steve?" Tony murmured, unusually quiet for the billionaire.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry." Steve looked at his old teammate with surprise. That was a phrase he rarely heard Tony say. "About the fight. About Wanda. About the Accords. Even a little about Barnes. I know you thought you were doing the right thing. I thought so too. I just figured if we signed the stupid papers we would get Ross and the UN off our backs for a little bit. Papers can be amended eventually, you know?"

"I'm sorry too. I should've told you about your parents. I thought maybe if you didn't know it would be easier to bring Buck on the team. You had already grieved for them; I figured telling you would break you."

"Well I think having Zemo tell me broke me more."

"I know. I'm sorry about Rhodey too. How's he doing?"

"Adjusting. The robotic leg braces still have some kinks to work out but they're helping. Trying to figure out how to get the cup holders to be a less awkward fit, but I'll get it eventually. How's the metal arm man?"

"He's in cryo-freeze in Wakanda. Bucky thought it would be safer to go under again until the scientists there can get all of the programming out of his mind."

"If you want me to take a look at their research let me know. I could probably figure it out in half the time it'll take them."

"Stark you really are something else," Steve tried to sound serious but a chuckle escaped. He could see Tony crack a little smile and it made him happy. Maybe this friendship could be repaired. Hopefully the others were feeling the same.

A sad beeping noise sounded from the computer monitors accompanied by a flashing red banner that read "No Match." The only monitor still running was the drug test screen, which had various types of drugs popping up on a list of matches for whatever was running in her system.

"Friday can't seem to find any missing people who match this girl. No DNA matches to anyone in any type of system on the planet. I give Hydra props. They found someone who is an actual ghost. And judging by the looks of that drug test, also invincible," Tony set down the blueberries in order to hit a few keys to clear the monitors and print out the results of the drug test.

"Hopefully she wakes up soon so we can at least get her name. I don't think she'll appreciate being called the invincible ghost," Steve glanced at the sleeping girl in the other room with a look of pity. Who knows how long this poor girl had been held by Hydra. It could have been weeks, or years, or decades. With their technology and experiments she could have been…

"Tony how far back did your search go?"

"I don't know…20 years? She looks like she's only 16," Tony sounded completely lost to what Steve was trying to get at.

"Go back further."

"How far? 30 years?"

"More like 90." Steve walked over so he was standing right next to Tony as he typed in the new search requirements. Tony shook his head, wondering if Capsicle had finally lost it.

"I don't think this will work, most of these kids have got to be dead by now. Or at least lying in a hospital and dying. The cases are probably closed too."

"Just search." They waited for a little bit before the red banner came up again. Steve cursed; he was sure he had been on to something.

"Language Cap," Tony cracked another smile. Steve smiled as well, but only briefly. He needed to figure out who this girl was. It was the only way to calm this growing feeling in his stomach. Turning to the room again, he felt something draw him towards her. The familiar warm feeling rose in him again. He crossed the hallway to the room and sat in the empty chair next to Nat. The girls face was turned towards him, her eyes still shut. Her breathing seemed less labored now that she had some water and food in her. The drugs leaving her system had probably also helped. Her cheeks had some color in them now so she no longer looked like a corpse. Steve's eyes ran over all of the features in her face, looking for something to give him a hint as to why he seemed to think he knew this girl. Just as he was about to lose hope he notice a little white scar underneath her left eye. He reached forward and brushed it with his finger.

"Steve? What are you doing?" Nat asked, a tinge of concern in her voice.

"This scar," Steve murmured.

"What about it? She has hundreds of them." Steve glanced over her again. Nat was right, there were quite a few other scars lining the girl's legs and arms, but this one was different.

"Those are all even, like a scalpel made them, but this is tiny. Like a scratch," Steve pulled back and looked at her again. Her cheekbones. Her hairline. After finding that scar he was starting to pick out similarities. The hair was a different color but Hydra would have taken every precaution when he became Captain America, just in case. He only needed to see her eyes, but who knows when she'll wake up. He needed confirmation now. Steve jumped up so quickly Nat nearly fell out of her seat. "Tony!"

"Christ, Rogers. You nearly gave me a heart attack," Tony dropped his bag of blueberries, a look of pure sorrow overcoming his face.

"Sorry. Did you get a sample of the girl's DNA?"

"What do you take me for? A peasant? Of course I got her DNA! I've been running DNA matches for the past five hours!"

"Right, sorry. I need you to run a DNA test between the girl and me."

Tony just stared at Steve. With all of his brain power Tony could not fathom why Steve wanted him to test this. "Are you kidding me? Why? You are not related. Rogers you have no siblings, your parents are dead. Even if you did have siblings they would be dead. Unless you have a super soldier sibling you forgot to tell us about. Or you fondued with Peggy and forgot to spill the details with us because you're banging her niece now."

"Just do it Stark." Tony shook his head and quickly typed in a command on the keyboard. Numbers and images flashed across the screen. A picture of Steve popped up on one of the monitors, along with some information on him. A few seconds later they heard a ding and a green banner appeared with the word "MATCH."

"I don't know what just happened." Tony looked between the monitor and Steve with a bewildered expression. Steve could hardly believe it. He couldn't even look at Tony. He just stared at the screen, tears filling his eyes. Only one word escaped his lips.

"Kate."


	3. Chapter 3

**So Spring Break came and then all of the papers and tests I needed to study for got neglected for that entire week. Coming back to school sort of hit me like a truck with thousands of pounds of responsibility. I finally got around to working on this again. Sorry it's a little shorter than the others but I hope you enjoy!**

 **I don't own any of the characters from the MCU. Kate is an original character I created.**

Even from behind closed eyelids Kate could see the bright lights shining down on her. Beeps from medical monitors filled her left ear and someone's breathing sounded in her right one. She squeezed her eyes tighter and prayed for the trillionth time that she was dreaming. Even after so many years she still hoped her prayers would be heard. She hoped that this was indeed a horrible nightmare and someday she would wake up in her bed in her family's tiny home in Brooklyn. But there's only so much praying could do; she gave up true hope a long time ago and now it was just routine to pray before inevitably opening her eyes. If this nightmare was going to last forever she realized she should just accept it and get through. Something good had to come out of all this pain, right?

Breathing in deeply, she slowly opened her eyes. Kate blinked at the harsh fluorescent light that shined down on her. Impulsively her arms went to rub her eyes due to the stinging the light caused, but she was shocked to find that this time they actually moved. Due to the shock she accidentally smacked her face. She didn't realize the force moving her arms and actually having the move would take. The sound of limbs smacking her face jerked the person next to her out of their thoughts.

"Hey, it's okay. You're safe now," the person said softly. Kate didn't acknowledge them; she was too busy staring at her free arms. Out of curiosity she moved her legs. They were free too! What was happening? She hadn't woken up on a table without being strapped down in who knows how long. Wait. This wasn't a table… Kate rested her arms at her sides so she could lift herself up a little to look around her. She was lying on a hospital bed. There was cushioning, sheets, a pillow. The little movement in her elbows caused a little sting of pain in her arms. IVs. Of course, this was why she was comfortable. These probably had some new hallucinogen and they wanted to see how the drugs would affect her. This was probably some drug induced coma. No wonder they were transporting her after so long. One of the labs had intense testing to do and she was the only subject that would survive. Nothing could kill her.

"Hey there," the person gently rested a hand on Kate's shoulder, causing her to jump. Kate finally looked over at the person. It was a woman around her mid-twenties, she wasn't sure. Time and age had become difficult for Kate to figure out. The woman had wavy, reddish brown hair that fell past her shoulders. Her blue eyes stared at Kate's with a sort of pitiful, concerned gaze. That was different. The doctors and scientists normally looked manic and excited when they saw her. This woman was different. Just from looking at her Kate could tell she was a fighter; her stance was relaxed but her arms and legs were poised in way that allowed her to easily defend anything that might threaten her, like Kate. This was a test. They wanted to see if Kate would try and run. That's why there were no straps or guards or doctors. Although this woman was very pretty she was definitely an agent. She gave off the vibe of someone who could snap your neck at any moment if you gave enough reason.

Kate lay back down on the bed with a sigh of defeat. It may seem like she could easily get away but there was definitely an army of guards waiting around the corner to drop her if she made one wrong move. She could feel tears forming as the glee of having free limbs faded away at the realization that this was still her living hell. It really was too good to be true.

"Sweetie it's okay. You're safe. My name is Natasha. You're at the Avengers compound. Hydra can't hurt you anymore," the woman said quickly, still trying to be reassuring. Kate looked at her with confusion. What was the Avengers compound? Why was that supposed to be calming? And Hydra? They would always find a way to hurt her. Dr. Erksine was the only person from Hydra she had ever met who had been nice to her. He even sent her that letter about Steve. Steve…

No. She didn't need this. She survived by being emotionless. Memories of her past just made this nightmare harder, it was better to just forget. Besides, her family was probably dead. There was no one left for her in this world. She forced her face to become the emotionless mask that had gotten her through every experiment and behavior session she'd been forced into. Maybe that would let them end whatever this was.

"Can you tell me your name?" _No, Natasha. I know what you're trying to do. You can't break me._ "Can you write it down for me?" Natasha pulled out a pad of paper and pencil from some bag on the floor. She set in Kate's lap and looked at her hopefully. Kate stared at it, knowing that any sudden movement would set off the doctors waiting for her to break. But she'd been doing this longer than they had been alive; she could do this. But her stomach said otherwise. A low rumble came from her. The traitor. Natasha's eyebrows raised and a knowing look came over her face. "How about some food? Do you want something to eat?" Something must have shown on Kate's face because after asking that question Natasha gave a small smile and stood up. She unhooked the IV's in Kate's arms and turned off the machines. The red head stepped back a little to give Kate space to get up off the bed. "Come one. It's okay. I promise that no one will hurt you."

She wasn't sure what about that sentence convinced her, but Kate decided it would be okay. Slowly moving her legs to hang off the bed, she willed herself to slide off until her feet touched the floor. Looking down at her twig legs and stick thin torso, she felt her cheeks heat up and moved her arms to cover herself. Her fingers grazed soft fabric and Kate noticed that someone had taken her out of that paper thin hospital gown and into a pink sweater and comfortable black pants. She didn't have shoes or socks but the cool ground felt soothing on her feet. Natasha must have been started to realize that touching her was going to get her nowhere so she simply went over to the door and said, "This way sweetie."

Kate nodded and looked back at the hospital bed before following Natasha out the door.


	4. Chapter 4

"Steve? Steve? Earth to Capsicle," Tony's voice echoed in the back of Steve's mind but all he could focus on was large green word on the screen. _MATCH_. It was her. He saw the scar but he didn't know for certain. It had been years, no, _decades,_ since he had seen her. And Tony's DNA test wouldn't lie. Maybe. He needed to talk to her. Needed to look into her eyes and hear her speak before his heart started beating again. "Steve!"

"Sorry. Um, sorry, I-" Steve blinked and looked at Tony, concern written all over his face.

"Your face looks like you've seen a ghost. Which I think is impossible given the fact that your best friend who was supposed to be dead turned out not to be dead. So whatever dead person from your past you saw I can almost guarantee is not actually dead."

"You might be right about something for once, Stark," Steve sat as he let out a sigh.

"I disagree with that. I'm right about a lot of things people just refuse to believe it. Wait-" Tony realized what Steve meant and sat down next to him. "Who did you see? Did you figure out our Jane Doe? Does this have to do with the fact that your blood matches hers? Steve."

"Friday can you pull up missing person cases from Brooklyn, NY in 1927?" Steve was staring at nothing, trying to picture what she last looked like before that day.

"Of course Captain," the computer system's voice answered. Files popped up on the screen, hiding the green letters that were now burned into Steve's memory.

"Is there a file for Kate Rogers?"

"There is. Kaitlyn Rogers, age 9. Abducted from her front yard in Brooklyn, NY, on October 8, 1927. Three days before her tenth birthday. Report filed by her mother Sarah Rogers. Case closed after six months of searching with no leads. Presumed dead," Friday read off the information on file and pulled up the picture attached. It was old and grainy, but Steve would recognize that smile anywhere. He focused on the space underneath her left eye. It was hard to see with the low quality of the picture but he knew exactly where to look and sure enough there was that little white line. The same scar the girl in the room across the hall had. It was her. "Young Kaitlyn was survived by her mother Sarah and brother Steven. I am assuming the brother is you Captain Rogers."

"You had a sister? Have a sister?"

"She's alive. After all this time, she was alive."

"Steve what happened to her?" Steve looked at his old friend. Any grudge Steve still held against Tony from the fight months ago disappeared in that moment. He could see genuine concern in Tony's eyes and right then he was grateful that the person in the room was Tony and no one else. Despite Steve keeping the truth about his parents' death from him, he knew Tony understood the confusion racing through his mind as he processed what they had discovered.

"It was so long ago, I…I…" As soon as he reached for the memory it disappeared. He couldn't think. He kept thinking about Kate the moment he ran into the jet and saw her lying there. She was so small. All the childlike joy from her old picture was gone. That girl from the jet hardly resembled his sister.

"Okay, okay. Sit down. It's fine," Tony sat down in his chair and waited patiently for Steve. After one last glance at the picture pulled up on the screen Steve obliged. "Friday close the case file."

"Yes sir." The screens went black.

"Steve, just take a moment and think. October 8th. What happened that day? Where were you?" Tony's voice was unusually soft, like he was talking to a scared child. The arrogant billionaire was completely gone.

"October 8th. It was three days before Kate's birthday. She was dancing around the kitchen like she normally did. Kate loved to dance and she was good at it. Well, as good as a nine year old with no training could be," Steve laughed at the memory. Kate would twirl around the house when they were little. She would spin and spin and spin until she became so dizzy she knocked into something. "She would knock into things all the time and it would drive our mother up a wall. Thankfully she was nothing like me and didn't bruise every time something bumped her. That was probably the only reason mother continued letting her dance in the house."

"She sounds amazing Steve," Tony murmured. He knew that saying too much would pull Steve out of his head and he would lose the memory.

"I was at the table drawing; I think mom was trying to keep me distracted while she did some cooking or something. Probably something special for Kate's birthday but we didn't have much. It was a little hard since my mom had two kids and her husband was gone. Anyway, Kate must have knocked into something it caused all of the stuff on the counter to crash down. Mom started screaming at her and Kate was crying. When Kate cried things happened which was why mom tried to calm her down, but that day mom was too angry so she told Kate to go outside while she cleaned up."

"What happened when she cried?"

"Things fell over or exploded, sometimes they flew across the room. I can't remember because I usually hid."

"Okay, keep going."

"Well Kate ran outside and I tried to help mom clean up the mess. Kate stayed outside for the rest of the afternoon which wasn't unusual. We had a tire swing and the two of us would spend hours trying to swing hard enough to wrap it around the branch. Eventually mom finished cooking whatever she had started and dinner as well so she asked me to get Kate. I went outside but couldn't find her. I yelled her name over and over again, enough times that not only our mom but also our neighbors came outside to try to find her. We spent all night looking. The police came and then they took over the case," Steve hadn't noticed at first but tears were starting to run down his face. Tony held out a tissue for him and Steve took it.

"And eventually they presumed her dead and closed the case."

"Mom was never the same."

"No parent would be."

Steve stared at the ground for a while thinking about the last time he saw his sister. Her sandy blonde hair perfectly framed her tan face. That tan was gone now, replaced with a pale tone of someone who hadn't seen sunlight in years. _No, decades_. Hydra had taken her. **Hydra**. It all led back to Hydra. He slammed his fist on the computer desk so hard it made Tony jump.

"Hydra."

"Cap, take it easy."

"Hydra messed with me back when I was a kid in Brooklyn. Why?"

"You weren't even connected with Erksine back then."

"What did they want with Kate?"

"Let's take a step back before you go Captain America kid-in-Brooklyn crazy."

Steve let out a huff and leaned back in the chair, his mind wandering back to Kate right before she ran out of the house. Her cheeks were lined with tears, her eyes puffy, her eyes… he couldn't remember the color of her eyes. The picture was black and white so he couldn't see the color. "I can't remember what color her eyes were."

"Wouldn't they be blue? Like yours? Well, blue with a little green according to Zemo," Tony let out a little chuckle but quieted down when he looked at Steve.

"No, there was something different about them but I can't remember…"

"Let's go see if she's awake," Tony stood up and held his hand out to Steve.

"Thanks Tony. It really is good to see you," Steve grabbed his old friend's hand.

"You too, Steve."


	5. Chapter 5

As they walked down the white hallway, Kate got a strong whiff of something cooking. Whatever it was smelled heavenly. Her stomach growled. She could not remember the last time she had eaten actual food. The scientists usually gave her some sort of runny mix of whatever they found in the kitchen. Only Dr. Erksine had cared enough to feed her properly. Kate had learned to live with the constant hunger. Over time it just became a dull throb and she could usually push the pain to the back of her mind.

"So, what is your favorite thing to eat?" Natasha asked. She had started out walking ahead of Kate but fell back a little when she realized how far ahead she had gone. Kate had not walked farther than the small space in her stone room since she had been transported out of Germany. She had heard the scientists talking about the end of a war and needing to transport important scientific research out of the country. That was…about…sixty years ago? Seventy? She didn't even know what year it was anymore. Her slashes were always based off of the guards' Christmas celebration. They would have a party and then wouldn't return for a few weeks. A lot of the weaker captives died during that period. Dr. Zola referred to that period as the test of will power. She had hated Dr. Zola. Her one gratification from her inability to die was that she had outlived him. When she heard he had been captured she had never felt such gratification before. It was cruel but she secretly celebrated.

"Sweetie? Are you okay?" She hadn't realized she had stopped walking. Her breathing was a little heavy; this hallway probably was not as long as she thought but compared to the walk from her stone room to the white room at the Hydra headquarters it was taking forever.

"Kate," she murmured. Her voice was low and scratchy from lack of use other than crying and screaming.

"Is that your name?" Kate nodded and continued walking, trying to go a little faster this time.

"Do you have a last name? If we knew your last name we could try to track down your family." It only took Natasha a few steps to catch up to her. This time when Kate got lost in thought she kept walking, refusing to let this strange woman see how damaged she was. "Do you know where you're from?"

"It doesn't matter," she murmured. That was all she could bring herself to say. Her father was gone before her brother was born. Her mother was most likely dead too. And her brother…Steve, oh Steve. He died during the war. She distinctly remembered the day one of the soldiers flung that newspaper into her cell. The headline was all she could focus on: "Captain Steve Rogers Presumed Dead." Kate couldn't bring herself to read the rest of the article. There was no consolation in it. Her brother was dead. For nearly a year after that day she hadn't felt any pain during the experiments. Her entire body had gone numb. She had felt there was nothing left to live for; no one would be waiting for her out in the world if she ever escaped. Tears stung her eyes and she blinked quickly before Natasha could see another sign of weakness in her.

The end of the hallway contained a set of elevators and a staircase. Kate glanced between the stairs and the elevators, trying to decide how to ask Natasha if they could use the elevators. Before she could open her mouth Natasha pressed the "up" button and the doors to the small metal box opened with a _ding_. The ride to the top floor was brief as they had only been one floor below. No wonder she could smell the food cooking. It took almost no time for the doors to open again and the smell to become overpowering. Laughter filled her ears. When was the last time she had heard genuine laughter? The laughs of everyone in the cells were always dry, lacking happiness and hope.

"Are you ready to meet the rest of the team?" Natasha waited to exit the elevator until Kate was ready. Was she ready? If Natasha was truly telling the truth and this was not Hydra, what did she have to be afraid of? Maybe her prayers had been answered and she could live a normal life. Well, as normal a life as someone like her could live.

Kate took a deep breath and stepped onto the shiny black floor. They were in a small entry way with an archway ahead of them. Glancing at Nat, she gave a small nod. Nat smiled back at her and walked into the larger room. It was an open floor plan with sofas and chairs spread out around a short table. On a raised platform behind the sitting area was a large dining room table and chairs. The wall to the left of the table and sitting area was all windows that overlooked a massive yard with a forest beyond. To the right of the sitting area was a kitchen, the center island surrounded by people.

"Nat! There you are! Has the girl wo-" one of the men pushed himself back from the island and began to walk over, stopping short when he noticed Kate was only a short distance behind the red-head. The man had short brown hair, cropped closely to his head like the guards. Faint stubble covered the skin above his lips and on his chin. His blue eyes were wary as he stared at her, muscled shoulders and arms tensing. It was the same reaction new guards had to her when they were going through training. Their final test was to fight her off and subdue her, a way to ensure that they could easily get the special tranquilizers into her should she ever decide to try and escape. Maybe even a way to remind her that she could never succeed if she tried. Her spirits were always lifted when she won, which happened on their first try normally, but most won on their second try.

"Hey guys. This is Kate. We were wondering if you left any food for us?" Nat stopped by the couch and glanced back at Kate, gesturing for her to come meet the large crowd.

"There's plenty, trust me. Vision has not yet learned portion control, despite the fact that he doesn't actually eat anything. He makes enough food to feed an army," a voice spoke from behind a girl with long brown hair and a red jacket. A moment later a dark skinned man in a wheelchair appeared. He rolled his chair until he was slightly in front of the island. He placed his hands in his lap and looked curiously at Kate. His intense gaze made her wrap her arms tight around her body.

"If I was feeding an army there would not be any food left," a man with purple skin and a yellow gem on his forehead responded. Kate could not place the sound but there was something off about his voice.

"It was a joke Vis. Do not take it personally," the brown haired girl laughed. Her voice had an accent. It was not German but it still made a shiver go down Kate's spine.

"I have gotten better at picking out jokes since you have been gone, dear Wanda. Only personal jabs at my abilities are still hard to pick out. Also sarcasm," the rest of the group laughed as the purple man moved away from the island and came towards Nat and Kate. "Hello Kate, it is very nice to meet you. My name is Vision."

Kate looked at Vision's outstretched hand. Something tugged at the back of her mind. A memory of her mother explaining normal social greetings, but it was so long ago. She was supposed to…do something with it? Hold it? Hit it? Shake it?

"He's an android. The gem in his forehead brought him to life. He won't hurt you," Nat moved to stand next to Kate, her hand hovering above her shoulder. Kate looked up at Vision's face. He looked human, the only difference was the color and the gem. Her eyes focused on the yellow gem. Something about it stirred a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach. A humming started in her ears. The entire world stopped as she stared at it. "Kate?"

"It is okay Natasha. She may take a while to warm up to me," Vision's voice snapped her focus back to the people around her. He dropped his hand and gave Kate a small smile. "Why don't we get you some breakfast?"

Kate nodded. The thought of food calmed the humming in her ears. She followed Vision and Natasha as they made their way over to the crowded island. Natasha stopped next to the man who had first spoken and introduced him as Clint. The brown haired girl said her name was Wanda. Rhodey was the name of the man in the wheelchair. Next to Wanda was Sam and across from him was a man named Scott. Vision went over to what must be their refrigerator and opened it.

"Kate, what would you like to eat?" He called back to them. She glanced between him and Natasha, unsure of the correct answer.

"Just give us whatever you can, Vision." Natasha seemed to understand Kate's unspoken communication more.

"So Kate, where are you from?" Clint asked. Everyone turned to look at her. Kate could feel her cheeks heat up. The last time she was the center of attention in a group this size she was hooked up to a bunch of machines and focusing on a large spear with a blue crystal. In the back of her mind she knew that they were not the same as the scientists, Natasha had told her that not even ten minutes ago, but she could not help the nervousness that took over her body.

"How's Bucky doing?" Rhodey asked. Everyone turned to look at him but he was looking at Kate. His expression was unreadable to anyone else but Kate saw the look of understanding in his eyes.

"He went back under cryo freeze until the Wakandan scientists figure out how to get the programing out of his head," Clint answered. Bucky. The name sounded familiar…

"Bucky?" Kate murmured.

"He's a friend," Sam answered, his voice tight on the word 'friend.'

"Winter Soldier." Kate remembered the day Karpov had brought her to the battle area to watch Bucky fight the others. He laughed at her, telling her that her brother's childhood friend was dead even though she could see him standing right in front of her. She knew that wasn't Bucky anymore but she still wanted to hope. She could bring him back. She knew she could. But Karpov would never let her get close enough to try.

"Yeah, they need to get the Winter Soldier programming out of his head. He's afraid that someone else like Zemo will get ahold of the code."

"Makes sense. We can't afford another incident like the one in Bucharest," Rhodey shook his head in agreement.

"I can help," Kate said, her voice strong. This was something she could do. Something she was sure of. She was sure of her own abilities.

"What?" a few voices asked.

"I can help Bucky."

"Kate, I don't think you understand…" Natasha went to put her hand over Kate's shoulder again but she pulled away.

"He's a friend and I can help him," Kate couldn't tell them how, it would only scare them. They would see her as a weapon just like Hydra did. But she needed to help Bucky, for Steve.

"He's more Steve's friend than ours but, Kate you don't…" Sam didn't get to finish. Kate heard the name.

"Steve?" Why did Sam say her brother's name? No. It couldn't be the same Steve. He died in 1945. "Steve is dead."

"Kate," a voice called from behind her. She turned and saw two men standing just outside of the opening that led to the elevators. The taller of the two stepped forward. She stared at his face, taking in every detail. She had only seen it on the newspaper the Hydra soldier had thrown at her on the worst day of her life. She took a few steps forward, focusing in on his blue eyes. The man in front of her looked almost nothing like her short, skinny, nervous brother, but his kind blue eyes were still the same. Nothing could stop the tears.

"Steve!" Her happiness propelled her forward and she jumped into her brother's arms.


End file.
